Beginning April 1, Maxwell will be on extended Spring/Summer Hours!
We’ll be open till 8 PM Monday through Thursday. Friday and Saturday hours will remain unchanged: Fridays till 5 PM and Saturdays till 3 PM.
Image credits:
Summer Solstice Sunrise over Stonehenge 2005
By Andrew Dunn, 21 June 2005.
License: CC BY-SA 2.0
This spring, Maxwell Memorial Library is selling geraniums from Bradtke Greenhouses, located in Weedsport. These iconic signs of summer are available in the following colors:
Red
White
White to Rose
Magenta
Salmon Splash
Plants come in 4.5-inch pots, and can be ordered in any quantity, from singles to dozens.
Orders can be placed March 23 through May 9. Pick-up will be on Saturday, May 16, 9 AM to 12 PM at the Camillus Village Hall, 37 Genesee Street.
Complete the order form available at the library, or submit your order online.
We accept cash, checks payable to Maxwell Memorial Library, and orders placed using PayPal.
All orders must be pre-paid, and there won’t be extra geraniums for purchase the day of pick-up. Unfortunately, we are unable to ship or deliver orders.
Thank you for your support of the library and a local small business!
Pricing
$5/single
$25/half-dozen
$40/dozen
You can mix-and-match colors!
Total cost is based on total number of geraniums.
Maxwell will be closed for part of Wednesday, April 22 while the staff get some training.
We’ll close at 1:30 PM & reopen at 4:30 PM.
Image credits:
Richard C. Tolman and Albert Einstein at Caltech, 1932
By Los Angeles Times
License: CC BY 4.0
March
Free
For grades 6 to 12
Register or call so we can have a kit made up for you!
This month’s craft is a Mason Jar Lid Suncatcher.
With Spring on the way and more sun shining, it’s a great time to make a suncatcher to hang in your window!
Maxwell Library again has a selection of Federal and New York State forms available.
Unfortunately, we do not have tax preparation services. Some libraries that do are listed at OCPL’s Tax Assistance Sites page.
The Camillus Senior Center may also have slots for tax prep available.
On January 28, the County Executive—J. Ryan McMahon, II—announced the completion of the mural in Maxwell’s Youth Area.
Here’s the County’s press release:
Saturday, February 14
11:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Free
No registration
Looking for information on preschools? Here is your chance to speak to representatives from local preschools!
Contact Melissa for more information:
YouthServices@MaxwellMemorialLibrary.org
315-672-3661
Maxwell Library will be closed Monday, January 26, due to the storm
At its January 20 meeting. Maxwell’s Board of Trustees approved the 2025 Annual Report to the Community.
The Report highlights our programs, services, and collections and shows how folks used the library in 2025.
Wednesday, February 4
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Due to the snow storm, Maxwell is closed on Friday, January 16.
Maxwell Memorial Library will be closed for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on Monday, January 19.
Image credit:
Martin Luther King Jr NYWTS 6 by Dick DeMarsico (New York World-Telegram and Sun staff photographer)
License: Donated to the Public Domain
Tuesday, January 20
6:00 to 8:00 PM
Note: Tuesday meeting
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Due to the weather, Maxwell Memorial Library is closed today.
Stay warm!
Read from January 2 through February 28
Hand in your BINGO cards by March 2
Free
No registration
One program for kids and teens, one for adults.
Cards are available at the library or you can print out your own from our website.
Read books that fit with categories on our BINGO cards, turn in the cards at the library, and be automatically entered in a drawing for one of several nice prizes at the end of the Challenge.
Maxwell Library is closed today, Thursday, December 11, due to the storm
Enter to win one of three trees filled with gift cards, each valued over $500!
Tickets on sale November 17 through December 13
Drawing on December 15
Thank You to Our Donors:
Adelita’s Mexican Cocina
Aesthetica Salon Spa
Buffalo Wild Wings
Jennifer Burke
Cam’s Pizzeria
Camillus Nails & Spa
Camillus Winter Sports
Charlee’s Ice Cream
Chocolate Pizza Co.
Country Clipper
Crazy Daisies
Finally Ours Diner
Fish Cove
Freedom of Espresso
Limp Lizard
LongHorn Steakhouse
Luminous Nails & Spa
Mitsuba
The Mixing Bowl
Monarch Jewelers
Oh My Darling & The Fitz
Pies Guys Pub & Grub
Plaza Liquors
Red Robin
Sam Rao Florist
Sixty One Main
SYNPLE
That’s What She Read
Toss & Fire Pizza
Twin Trees Camillus
West Hill Golf Course
Wild Birds Unlimited
Witty Wicks
The Wren’s Den
Purchase Tickets at Maxwell Memorial Library
Maxwell Library will be closed from 3 PM on Wednesday, November 26 through Friday, November 28 for Thanksgiving.
Monday, November 17
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Maxwell Memorial Library will close Tuesday, November 11, in observance of Veterans Day.
Image credits:
Unified by Service
By Jeremy D. Carpenter
2025 National Veterans Day Poster Contest Winner
Theme: Service to Our Nation
License: Public Domain in the US as a work of the federal government
Our OCPL system is installing an upgrade to the library catalog software starting on Sunday, November 2 at 6 PM. While this will provide enhanced services for patrons and staff, it will make the system unavailable during the upgrade process which might extend into Monday morning, November 3. This means the online catalog will be down, and any service that requires authenticating with a library card, such as Libby, Hoopla, and the databases, will be unavailable.
We hope that everything will be up and running again by the start of business on Monday, but please bear with our OCPL technicians as they undertake this huge job. We appreciate your patience. Of course, any items you have already checked out or downloaded will be accessible, so make sure to have your reading material on hand before Sunday afternoon.
Maxwell is one of the dropoff sites for donations to St. Joseph’s Church Food Pantry. The Pantry asked us to share the following request:
To help our neighbors in need this Thanksgiving we hope to collect 140 bags containing each of these items!
If you can help us reach our goal please drop off a bag in our collection bins by November 5th.
Please label the bag “Thanksgiving.”
St. Joseph’s Church Food Pantry
5600 W. Genesee St. Camillus
Animals: Real and Fantastical
Works in colored pencil by Jamie Ohman
November 4 through 29, 2025
Jamie Ohman has been drawing for as long as she’s been able to hold a pencil. She was always encouraged to pursue her talent and took art classes throughout her school years. A 2000 graduate of West Genesee High School, she majored in applied media arts with a concentration in animation at Edinboro University of PA, graduating in 2004.
After working in animation for several years with a few different companies, Jamie decided that art as a full-time career did not suit her. She has continued to freelance as an artist since college, mainly creating pet portraits. She continues to improve her skills by drawing a wide variety of subjects, though dogs and other canines remain her favorites.
Outside of art, Jamie loves to spend time outdoors in nature hiking with her dogs or just reading a book on the back patio. She also enjoys photography, gardening, watching movies, competing in dog sports, and hanging out with her family and friends.
Our winter schedule goes into effect on November 1. We’ll be closing 1 hour earlier (at 7 PM) on Mondays through Thursdays until the end of March.
Our Friday and Saturday hours will remain unchanged.
| Monday – Thursday | 10 AM – 7 PM |
| Friday | 10 AM – 5 PM |
| Saturday | 10 AM – 3 PM |
| Sunday | Closed |
Image credits:
The Melting of Memory
A mashup derived from:
A Melting Snowman
By Sertion, modified by RexxS
License: Donated to the Public Domain via CC0 1.0
ClockFace by AlexBG
License: Donated to the Public Domain
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“Libraries always remind me that there are good things in this world.”
Lauren Ward
October 2025
Dear Supporter of Maxwell Memorial Library,
As we close out an exciting, rewarding year at Maxwell Memorial Library, we want to start with a heartfelt thank you to our patrons. Your belief in Maxwell Memorial Library has allowed us to become more than a building with books – we are your community center. Step through our doors and you might find patrons and visitors attending talks, listening to story time, taking a class, enjoying art exhibits, researching online, warming up or cooling down, working remotely, tutoring students, assembling a jigsaw puzzle, learning about nature, making crafts, experiencing cooking demos, playing Cribbage and Mah Jong, and yes – reading. The list goes on!
In a time of constant change, your support ensures that our collections — both traditional and digital — and services will continue to grow to meet the diverse needs of the community. You make it possible for us to offer these enriching opportunities and services to children, students, seniors and everyone in between. Your generous support during the 2025 Annual Appeal ensures that we can continue this long tradition to keep our collections growing, expand our services and adapt to the future needs of our community for years to come.
Will you consider making a donation today? Your gift is tax-deductible and allows us to continue our important mission. You can give securely online here, use the QR code below (requires PayPal app on a mobile device), or download the letter, complete the form at its bottom, and mail the form with your check. We will add all donors’ names to our appreciation wall in recognition of your generosity. Thank you for being a steadfast supporter of the Maxwell Memorial Library.
Sincerely,
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees
Maxwell is selling Salt City Coffee again!
Orders can be placed October 1–November 1. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the library.
Place your order on a paper form that you bring in to the library or on our online form.
All varieties come in 12-ounce bags and are available as whole bean or ground.
We anticipate coffee will be ready for you to pick-up at the library the week of November 10, but we’ll notify you when it’s ready. Unfortunately, we are unable to ship orders.
Thank you for your support of the library and a Syracuse small business!
Hoopla says that they have resolved the tech issues they were having.
I (Pete) tested things out and was able to use the app, but please let me know if you’re having any problems with it.
Hoopla has sent us the following message:
Due to the ongoing Amazon Web Services issue that is currently affecting internet access across the globe, Hoopla Digital is experiencing technical issues. The team is monitoring the situation and working to get the platform fully functional as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience!
Monday, October 20
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Amended and accepted by the Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees on September 2003; January 22, 2018; June 21, 2021; September 15, 2025
Image credits:
Book cover – Robert’s rules of order Orig 1876 edition
License: Public Domain
Monday, September 15
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Maxwell will be closed Thursday, September 11 since the building will be getting a new roof that day.
Maxwell Library will be closed Saturday, August 30 through Monday, September 1 for Labor Day.
Image credits:
Labor Day 3c 1956 issue U.S. stamp
By The Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Designed by Victor S. McCloskey, Jr., using as source material a photograph of a portion of the mural by Lumen M. Winter located in the AFL-CIO building in Washington DC.
License: Public Domain
Monday, August 16
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Maxwell’s summer reading programs for Kids/Teens and for Adults have begun!
The programs run from June 30 through August 22.
Go to the ReadSquared site where you can register and then log your reading.
Programs:
Each book, ebook, audiobook, or eaudiobook counts, and the more you read, the greater your chances to win one of our great prizes!
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Maxwell will be closed on Friday, July 4 for Independence Day.
Declaration of Independence by John Trumbull
License: Public domain
Saturday, June 21, 2025
Thinking systematically about the risks of AI requires two lines of thinking. First of all, we have to establish what it is we want and don’t want. Secondly, we then have to find the most effective ways of imposing our preferences.
— Richard E. Susskind
AI (so-called) may be inevitable. Certainly generative AI and other technologies for making associations within large collections of data are here already, and tech cheerleaders push the claim that there’s nothing we can do to stop the tech.
The question, as Humpty Dumpty told us, is Which is to be master. Mr. Dumpty, of course, was presuming that an individual could control language, and we recognize that claim as absurd since we use language within a speech community which no individual controls. Indeed, language may even be beyond the control of its community. But is AI beyond community control?
The intent for this month’s program is that it be a discussion of how individuals can use AI while remaining true to their own ethical codes and how the human community can control AI in order to make it work for the community as a whole. We’ll look at issues in ethics, environmental responsibility, the economy, government, and whatever issues participants bring.
The purpose of this policy is to ensure maximum access to the information and materials in the collection of Maxwell Memorial Library.
Adopted October 25, 2021
Amended June 16, 2025
Monday, June 16
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Thursday, June 19
Maxwell Library will be closed for Juneteenth on Thursday, June 19th.
Back in December, when Maxwell changed platforms for our events calendar, we lost the service that kept our On the Shelf webpage up-to-date with our new books, movies and audiobooks. We’re happy to say that we signed up for Wowbrary, a service that lets us resume On the Shelf. Additionally, those who are interested can sign up to get a weekly alert showing the newest books, DVDs, and audiobooks that we add to our collection.
The nice thing about Wowbrary is that titles are connected to our library catalog. Whenever you spot something of interest, you’ll be able to click instantly, reserve it, and check it out at your convenience. And of course, like everything else in the library, this service is free!
Maxwell’s summer reading programs for Kids/Teens and for Adults will be starting soon!
The programs run from June 30 through August 22, but you can register at ReadSquared starting June 1. Then, starting June 30, log your reading at the same website.
On the ReadSquared site, you’ll see information about and links to register for the appropriate program:
Each book, ebook, audiobook, or eaudiobook counts, and the more you read, the greater your chances to win one of our great prizes!
Watch for more information on our website and in our newsletter.
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Respectfully retire tattered, worn, faded or other unserviceable American flags.
Drop off flags at Maxwell by Wednesday, May 21 & we will send them over to Betts Library, or you can take them directly to Betts by Friday, May 23.
Betts Library is located at:
4862 S. Salina St.
Syracuse, NY 13205
315-435-1940
Monday, May 19
6:00 to 8:00 PM
The public is welcome to attend.
The Maxwell Memorial Library Board of Trustees meets on the third Monday of the month at 6 PM unless stated otherwise. The annual meeting is held in October. The Board does not meet in December.
If you wish to address the board or request that a topic be on the agenda, please contact the library director at least two weeks before the meeting. The agenda is posted online one week before.
Maxwell Library will be closed Saturday, May 24 through Monday, May 26 for Memorial Day.
The Onondaga County Public Library System would like to get feedback on the usability of the online catalog.
You can take their survey by going to the Google Form they have set up or by printing a copy, filling it out, and bringing it in to Maxwell.
The referendum for libraries is on the WGCSD budget ballot.
Voting takes place Tuesday, May 20, 2025 from 6 AM to 9 PM in the West Genesee High School Auditorium Lobby.
Please vote!
More information is available online at:
www.maxwellmemoriallibrary.org > About Us > Board of Trustees
Saturday, April 19, 2025
Techno-distraction,… digital distraction,…. We all have an idea of what those terms might mean, even when we first encounter them. They’re that quagmire of potential side quests that tempt us away from the task that we sat down at the computer (or with the device) to accomplish, hoping (vainly?) that tech would make our task simpler.
